Giant Hogweed is an escaped garden ornamental originating from Caucasus region of Asia. It spreads rapidly by seed, and can produce 50,000 seeds per plant in a season enabling it to rapidly colonise large areas. Giant Hogweed has hollow green stems with purple spots grows up to 5 metres tall; dark green, coarsely toothed leaves divided into 3 large segments; lower leaves can be 2.5 metres in length; small white flowers are produced in large flat-top umbrella-like flower heads up to 0.8 metres across. Warning: small hairs on stems and leaves contain a poisonous photo-toxin sap that can cause severe irritation, blistering and dermatitis.
Giant hogweed is an invasive species controlled by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and, as such, it is illegal to cause the plant to spread in the wild. Careth Ltd can erradicate Giant Hogweed through selective herbicide use and manual removal and licensed landfill disposal. Follow-up visits may be required for several years as the seeds can remain dormant in the soil.
